Hisquori
by Quig Alchemist
Summary: Ichigo has become a Hisqouri. The mix of a hollow, Quincy, and soul reaper. He gains their powers as well as their dangerous mindset, making him subconsciously suicidal. Uyru lost his powers before and is now determined to get them back at any cost.
1. Chapter 1

This story is a continuation of another called Headaches. It would prolly be better to at least _breeze _over that one before you read this one. But if you don't, it doesn't bother me. (it's not like it was a bad story…) Reviews are shiny either way. Thank you and now here is chapter 1…

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 1

"I've gotta get rid of this stuff." Ichigo said to himself as he located the troublesome bottle of pills and glared at them. "You caused me a lot of hell you realize…" he murmured gruffly, trying not to feel quite so dumb as he spoke to the inanimate object. He looked in the bathroom mirror, seeing his usual scowl, but more importantly, he noticed that his color had finally returned after his near transformation into a hollow. He glanced over to the pearly white throne next, considering dumping the fake pain medication inside. _What if little hollow fishies come out…? _He shook his head, feeling ridiculous, and emptied the bottle's contents into the toilet bowl. He flushed, watching the little devils circle several times before disappearing to somewhere he had no desire to imagine.

"Ichigo? Are you okay? You've been in there since you got home…and you're early! Did something happen at school?" _I was only 30 minutes early…_mom_…_ Ichigo thought, pursing his lips. His younger kid sister, Yuzu, had pretty much turned into his mother over the last few years, so he was almost used to these kinds of questions.

"Yes, I'm fine." He said with an agitated sigh, opening the bathroom door. "It's just my head was still hurting from yesterday and I came to get to some aspirin. I looked everywhere, but I think we're out."

"That's strange. I just bought a new bottle yesterday…"

"Don't worry about it. I'll go pick some up later." _I want to be _sure_ there's no more of that foul stuff getting into out house. _He added silently.

"Sounds great! Hope your head feels better!" She hurried off and Ichigo shouted a quick, "Thanks." as she left.

"Since I'm already in here, I guess I'll get a shower." _I don't particularly feel that clean after all that. _He walked back to his room, grabbing a fresh change of clothes before returning to the bathroom. He closed the door, pulling a towel from the cabinet beneath the sink. As he reached over to start the hot water, he was hardly focused on his actions. His brain seemed to be a million miles away even as he began to get undressed. Just as he lifted his white tee shirt over his head, something new brought him back in the atmosphere, sparking his interest. He leaned closer to the mirror, dropping his shirt, and began to investigate his appearance.

A small round circle, approximately the size of a hollow's, looked to have been burned into his skin. He peered at it curiously, also noting a cross spread across the black circle with tiny stripes by its side. The design seemed to resemble the markings on a hollow's mask as the stripes were repetitive, three framing either side of the cross.

"Where in the world did this come from?" Ichigo rubbed at the center of his chest uselessly, hoping it would disappear. "Maybe I can wash it off." He thought optimistically and jumped in the shower. He began to scrub at the mark aggressively, only creating red sore welts on his skin. No matter how much he tried, the odd symbol refused to fade away.

Ichigo gave up with a sigh a minute or so later, and stared at it more closely under the beating shower of water. The circle was dark on the inside, but where the cross and stripes appeared, the color of his skin showed through. It looked more like an intricate tattoo than anything sinister. _I guess it's from before…but I don't think this is anything bad. Tomorrow after school I'll go ask Urahara about it. _He inhaled deeply, ignoring his new markings and decided that all he could do was to keep it well hidden. The last thing he needed was to try and explain why he had gotten a 'tattoo' and what he meant by it. That was another headache all over again.

Ichigo headed back to his bedroom, still drying his hair in a towel after the shower. He still didn't feel much like eating though. His soft pajama bottoms swished against his legs in the darkness as he found his way to his bed. All the ways you could express the word 'good' would still not be enough to describe how he felt as he finally laid down on his bed again.

To say the least, the day had been a nightmare. It had all started out with a simple headache and one stupid pill that nearly transformed him into a mindless, blood lusting hollow. If you say that's simply impossible all for just one day, you'd probably never believe this story anyway.

_Finally! _Ichigo thought closing his eyes, as he buried his face deep into the pillow. _Sleep!_

-----------------------------------------------

Uryu looked over at the lifeless chained-cross lying on his bedside table. He tucked his knees closer to his chest beneath his chin with a sigh. Fresh bandages wrapped the fingers on his right hand, but the persistent bleeding still made the crimson stains visible from the outside of the cloth.

_Did I really lose them? _He tried closing his eyes and calling out to a power that was impossibly deep inside, but he felt nothing respond. He sighed heavily again and concealed his tired eyes into the tops of his kneecaps. He'd seen far too much for any one person on any one day. He'd risked his own life to save another and ended up losing his power and identity as a Quincy. He knew he should be happy that Ichigo was alive and well, but he was feeling a deep burning flame of hate. This feeling that was constantly growing inside him was preventing him from putting his mind to rest. _It's just not fair! _He yelled to anyone that could have heard him inside his own head. Somewhere, a voice answered that was most likely himself, _Life's never fair…_ and Uryu seemed to fall into a forced sleep.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thanks so much for all the feedback on Headaches. It really meant a lot that so many people wanted to see the sequel as much as I did. And believe me, you won't be disappointed. (Finished writing it last night) The next chapter will have you saying "poor Ichigo" all over again…well not really for him as much as…meh, read it when it comes out. You'll know what I'm saying…

Anyways, school's coming up for me, so I'll type and post as I can. I'm usually pretty diligent, but at the same time, please be patient. (I even sacrificed reading that stupid Harry Potter book to write this! Ahh! I cannot believe I'm still on page 30! I bet you I'm the only one in this world…but then again, this story was much more important! Heh.)

Ta ta for now! (oh yeah! and poke that little button that says review for me, okie tay?)

-Quig-


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Ichigo's first thoughts as his eyes snapped open the next morning were, _Thank you God for such a bright and beautiful Friday morning! _Sure it was going to be chock full of hectic questioning, but he knew he could get through it. This was the last day before the weekend after all.

The boy leaped from beneath his bed sheets and got dressed in a much more hurried fashion than his usual lazy teenage self would allow. He pulled on his long sleeved jacket for school, taking no notice of the inside of his arms.

Any person observing his actions would see the odd, almost joyous expression on his face and might have guessed he was by no means on his way to have his brain melted at school. He ran down the stairs, nearly skipping, with an uncommon smirk glued to his lips. His family was already having breakfast, who of which all seemed tired, but happy that it was finally the end of the week. Still, their content was nowhere near the level of Ichigo's enthusiasm.

"What happened to you? You have another one of _those _dreams again?" His father had a bandage over his nose and was in no mood to get any other part of his body injured. He'd much rather sit and eat his eggs with no fights this morning, even if he could tell his son was feeling better and in a much less violent frame of mind.

"No, no." He said this gently and actually laughed at the accusation. Yuzu and Karin froze, just as Isshin dropped his fork with a clatter on his plate. The community look all around the table was definitely, "What kind of crack are you on?"

"I'm just having one of those great kinds of mornings!" He flashed a big toothy grin and his dad suddenly rose from his chair.

"Where's that darn telephone…I've got to call the…psychiatrist…" His eyes were wide as if he'd seen a ghost for the first time, as he disappeared into the living room. Ichigo didn't seem to be bothered by his father's odd behavior though, and took his seat at the table.

"Yum Yuzu! It looks so delicious!" He reached over to the plate of bacon and grabbed a crispy slice. Yuzu was far too stunned, as was her sister, to take the comment, let alone say thank you. He brought the bacon to his lips, humming a slight tune, and generally acting _far_ to happy to be their older brother they called Ichigo.

Then he froze with his mouth hanging open stupidly.

"Why are you two staring at me like that?" He narrowed his eyes angrily and finished the act of taking a bite of his bacon. "Urgh!" He shouted, spewing bits of the crisped meat across the table. "This is the most _disgusting _thing I've ever tasted in my life!" He hurled his plate across the room where it shattered against the opposite wall. Yuzu and Karin remained completely speechless, but this time it was for a whole other reason. Isshin came sprinting in seconds later, the phone still in his ear. He looked genuinely confused and threw his son a troubled look.

"What happened…?" Ichigo was now glaring around the room with his fists curled tightly, as he stood up at the end of the table.

"What're you lookin' at Pops? Same with you two losers. Shut your freakin' mouths and quite staring, before I shut them for you!" His eyes flickered with malice, as the threat he gave was potent. For a brief moment, his irises almost appeared gold-colored. "I've had enough of you freaks. " he said rolling his eyes like a pouting teenager. Ichigo looked about without saying another word and spotted the closest kitchen window. He walked with a major slump in his step toward it and made his own exit by breaking the glass with his elbow.

"Yes, I'd like to schedule an appointment as soon as possible with the best psychiatrist you've got. Uh huh. Ichigo Kurosaki. Thank you very much. See you tomorrow." He hung up the phone looking more upset than before. His hands were shaking, as he was unsure of a way to speak to his son when he returned. Yuzu was crying and Karin gently tried to consol her. Neither of the girls was looking better than their father. The man looked down at the floor, then the ceiling, still wondering what a father should do.

----------------------

"Hi guys."

"Oh, Ichigo, you're back!"

"Yeah, I guess I am…"

"Good to see you're alright man!"

"Yeah, Chad said you'd be okay, but we still weren't too sure. You scared us pretty bad yesterday you know."

"Sorry. I just wasn't feeling that great."

"Ha! That should be the understatement of the year!" Ichigo had gotten to school, but just a moment ago, he felt as if he had just woke up. He couldn't seem to remember anything about the morning no matter how hard he tried. He didn't recall getting dressed, eating breakfast, or seeing his family at all. It was really quite strange, but when was his life ever normal.

"Hey Ichigo!" Rukia walked over to him with a cheery air to her voice. "Feeling better?" He nodded and she lowered her tone. "Listen, I wanted to tell you that I won't be home for a few days. I'm helping Kisuke with something."

"Alright." He understood her hush-hush manner and approached an isolated student's desk. "Hey there Uryu." He stopped in front of him and smiled nervously. "Um, thanks for everything yesterday. I didn't feel like I'd really said it enough. You really saved me." Ishida pretended not to acknowledge Ichigo's existence and kept staring down at the book on his desk. It was obvious he wasn't reading it, but instead just staring as if was purposely ignoring him. "Seriously Uryu…" Ichigo touched his shoulder and instantly received an icy glare from Ishida. He recoiled instinctively as Uryu hissed coldly, "Don't touch me Kurosaki. Don't _ever _touch me." Ichigo could have sworn the temperature dropped 10 degrees in the room. He backed off, throwing out a not so much as uneasy, but apologetic smile, and headed back toward his seat. _What's his deal? _

He decided not to dwell on the thought too deeply and instead opened his textbook to page 86 in unison with the rest of class on their teacher's command. Today they were studying Algebraic Equations and such. Math. Yippee. This was simply his favorite subject. It just made him want to get up and do a happy dance right in front of his class. Yeah right. More like a sedative. He was sure this class was going to last forever…

"Yeah! Finally lunchtime! That class was a killer wasn't it? And talk about that pop quiz!"

"Huh?"

"What do you mean 'huh'? The pop quiz, duh."

"Um…what pop quiz…?"

"Did you fall asleep somewhere Ichigo? The one we _just_ took!" The boys were sitting together in their normal lunch spot again, opening their sack lunches. Ichigo glanced to the right and saw the spread of concrete where he'd face-planted before. He noticeably winced. That had _really _hurt; he just hadn't realized it at the time of impact. His chest was a bit more of a problem at that moment to put it mildly. His face was still a bit sore and sensitive to the touch.

"I didn't take any quiz!" He yelled, becoming angry.

"I thought you looked funny. You didn't seem to be writing any answers down. Did you not pay attention to the lesson?"

"I…I don't know…" He either had a severe case of A.D.D. or it was something relating yesterday's events. He was guessing the latter was much more accurate.

"Kurosaki!" A shrill voice sliced the air like a hot knife through his brain, and all four boys quickly looked around. Their teacher was rushing forward in a mad fury with the lust for blood in her eyes.

"Ooh, busted…" Keigo whispered into Ichigo's ear. The three's names who hadn't been called began to shrink back as the orange-haired student stood to take the punishment.

"Classroom! Now!" She was beyond the point of mildly pissed. She probably would have taken a machete to his head if she had one. Either way, he got the hint and quickly made his way to the classroom.

"Yes ma'am?" he asked politely as possibly when he stepped inside the classroom, truly unsure of what he'd done.

"'What'? You may ask? Well, sir, do you think I'm running a clown school here?"

"Of course not Ma'am."

"Then what, may I ask you, can make you think this is so funny?" She roared as her sentence came to an end, and she slammed a piece of paper down in front of Ichigo. He hesitantly picked it up as if it would bite a few fingers off, although at that moment, he was afraid his teacher would do more damage. He began to read the top line designed for one's name on the pop quiz. "_Go screw yourself you mother…" _He didn't have to finish reading the end of such a severe insult for his stomach to turn the way it did. What made matters worse is that he was positive the message was written in his own hand. His skin paled and he suddenly didn't have the guts to stare his teacher in the face.

"I swear I didn't write this!" He yelled out desperately as his plea was directed at his paper.

"Don't lie to me. I've already called your father. Leave now, and don't come back until you've had your attitude straightened out." She left him there without a line to cling to. He continued to stare down at the paper, feeling like slime. He knew that he wouldn't write something like this, but he knew that _he _had indeed done it. So much for the great Friday.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Split personality much? Heh, next chapter gets scary. Even for Ichigo. Please leave me a review! Thanks so very much for you lovely people who have followed this story over from Headaches! You don't know how happy this makes me!

-Quig-


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Ichigo stopped by the bathroom, feeling sick, before ultimately leaving school grounds. He needed to wait a little while and think about how he should face his father's wrath. He walked wearily to the sinks and turned on the brisk stream of water. He rolled up his sleeves and dipped his hands into the flow from the faucet. He cupped his fingers and then splashed water on his face. It was cool, but not nearly as refreshing as he had previously hoped. As he began to dry his arms and face on a paper towel, he looked at his reflection in the mirror and gasped.

Jagged red cuts were engraved into the inner sides of both arms. They sliced across his wrists in all direction, eventually crawling their way up to his elbows. They all looked relatively fresh, but others were beginning to scar and scab over as if they'd been there for a long time. Why hadn't he noticed the marks until now?

Ichigo had officially become scared to death. _I didn't do this! But…! Who else other than me could have done it…? Something I can't explain is happening to me…_

A soft creaking of the open bathroom door alerted him, and he hastily unrolled his sleeves. He looked around and saw Uryu enter still wearing the same unforgiving scowl on his face.

"Oh, hey! Um, about earlier…whatever I did, I'm sorry…" Ichigo was still visibly shaken by the findings on his arms, but Ishida couldn't care less about his mental or physical condition.

"Don't apologize. I don't want to hear it." He snapped back at him with venom. He straightened the glasses resting on the bridge of his nose and then proceeded to completely ignoring Ichigo. He walked right past him and immediately began to wash his hands.

"Uryu." The mousy boy didn't look up again, and lathered his hands with soapsuds. Ichigo could see that Ishida was shaking just as greatly as he was, but instead of the reason being fear, he seemed to be shaking with an uncontrollable anger. "Talk to me. What's up with you?"

"Darn it Ichigo, are you just trying to make things worse for me? Don't act like you don't know!" Uryu's voice had now elevated to a livid shout that the other boy had never heard him use before. He stormed out of the bathroom, soap residue still on his hands. Ichigo followed under the influence of severe curiosity and unexplained confusion, but instead trailed him through a different exit of the school. _What did I do? _He was genuinely unsure of what he would gain from pursuing Uryu, so decided to go home after all, growing more and more frightened with each passing event.

-----------------

When Ichigo arrived at home, no one in his family spoke a single word to him. They had no doubt heard about the mishap at school. Isshin glared, Karin gave him a shame-filled stare, and Yuzu, the most fragile of all, was still terrified and hid in her room as soon as she heard he was home. Ichigo decided to break the awkward tension around the room and clapped a hand on his father's back. Isshin had been sitting in his easy chair reading the _Medical Times_, but when his son came in, he glowered at him over the top of the paper. Now, he nearly jumped out of skin while he shot anxious glances at Ichigo, almost afraid of his touch.

"Uh Dad, what I'd miss? Why's everyone acting so strange?" He gave a small nervous smile and buried his hands deep in his pants pockets.

"I didn't think you'd have the gall to come straight home." His dad said with no emotion, his eyes returning to the paper. "After all the crap you pulled today."

"If you're talking about the quiz, listen, I didn't write that! Honest!"

"If you think that I've suddenly 'forgotten' about the incident from this morning, you'd be sadly mistaken." Ichigo looked around the room, suddenly spotting the broken window in the kitchen, and felt his stomach lurch. "Your punishment will come from that as equally as what I heard on the phone from your teacher."

"But Dad! I didn't do it! And what are talking about 'from this morning'? I have no idea what you're talking about!"

"Enough." Isshin barely breathed the deadly word. His son immediately bit his tongue. "I've heard enough from you. Go to your room and I don't want to see you again until _I _tell you can come out tomorrow morning for your appointment."

"Appointment? Dad, I'm not sick."

"I said _enough_." The intense look that was cast on Ichigo would have sent a hollow away cowering in fear. He marched to his room on that note, filled with a heavy depression. It was truly sickening. He slowly began to realize that not only was he losing half his mind, he was also losing his friends, family, and any control over his life at all. And the worst part about it was the fact that he couldn't remember it even as the events occurred right in front of his oblivious eyes. It was all happening far too fast for any person to handle, even if he wasn't entirely human. _I have to talk to Urahara. Now. Maybe he'll understand the crazy things that are going on inside of me. _

Ichigo locked his door, but instead of _directly _obeying his father's wishes, began plotting a way of escape. He decided it best to leave the house in his soul reaper form, but soon found out it wasn't that easy. With Rukia gone, he'd have to eject himself from his own body, which was a lot harder than it sounded. He did some digging, and eventually found her glove under his bed. He next had a little trouble trying to punch himself in the head, but finally achieved his goal of separating from his body. When he did so, he instantly noticed a distinct change from the previous times he'd been in his soul form.

As he laid his unoccupied body facedown on the bed, Ichigo blinked, noticing his right eye was now seeing things in what seemed to be a black and red x-ray film. He wasn't sure why half of his vision had now changed, but he wasn't necessarily complaining about it either. It was almost kind of cool, and he soon found himself squinting as he closed one eye after the other, obviously amusing himself. Then another thought came into his mind. _I wonder how it looks? _

He stumbled over to his wall mirror (walking posed as more of challenge now with only one 'good' eye) and saw that the same strange eye was now filled with a sharp golden hue. But that wasn't the only thing that bothered him. Where the white of his eye should have been, it had been completely replaced with the blackness of coal. He rubbed at his eye, seeing it made no difference as the black surrounding the yellow never faded, and so he shrugged his shoulders calmly.

Ichigo was still fully clothed in his normal soul reaper's attire, but fastened to his left wrist was a small, what seemed to be, bracelet. A closer look told him it was indeed a form of bracelet, and held a small jangling cross on a shining silver chain. He suddenly put the missing pieces together in his head. _This looks like a…! Quincy…! _He attempted to finish his thought, but was interrupted by his hasty rise in panic. He tried yanking off the small silvery trinket, but to no avail. There seemed to be some invisible force restricting him. He moved his hand across his chest, attempting to steady the rapid beating of his heart, but when his fingers slid through, the piece of jewelry instantly became the last worry on his list.

Ichigo had taken no notice when he had looked into the mirror before, but now he could clearly see the other side of his room through a hollow hole in his chest. The hole drove straight through to his back, creating a perfect circle even around the black material he was wearing. His fingers ran along its edge, dipping within its rim, and trembled hysterically. He feared his heart would never slow down now.

He left the reflective glass at a dead sprint and leaped out his window. He now had a terrified one-track mind that was only focused on getting to Urahara's shop.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ooh cool new outfit. (I actually got bored and drew it and the Hisquori symbol that's on Ichigo's chest one day. If you wanna see it, I'll post it on Deviant Art, or whatever.)

I've gotten a lot of reviews saying things like, "You like torturing Ichigo don't you?" "Do you have a thing for pain and suffering?" etc. Yeah, I don't know why, but I just like writing stuff like this. I usually kill of my characters ALL the time so yeah…but I promise not to here. I just don't have the heart to kill off Bleach peoples yet. :) But all things come in due time. –evil laughter- -cough- You'd be surprised the happy-go-lucky kind of person I am with all the bright and shiny things! XD (really random and clutzy too…)

Well, that's all for now. I'm at the beach right now(lols one letter less than 'Bleach'-kills self-), but I'll still be posting and getting all your reviews and other lovely comments! Thanks so very much!

Don't forget to review here too and tell me what you think of Ichigo's sucidalishness. It only gets better! (or in his case, worse) XD

-Quig-


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

As Ichigo ran, an entirely different world from the one he knew was stretched out before him courtesy of the new vision from his right eye. Everything he saw was painted in an inverse of red and black, creating a brilliant and even more unbelievable tapestry. He could distinguish the different types of people through their visible spiritual strength due to their pure glowing whiteness. He guessed, as the more examples he saw, that the whiter the person was, the fewer spiritual gifts they contained. He saw much more of those types of people, so he figured he was safe even as he ran down the middle of the street. Although, he failed to notice that this wasn't such a wise idea after all, as these people he had so quickly sprinted by were staring directly at him. Most stopped what they were doing to watch the strange boy pass, even if they had no more spiritual capability than a stuffed lion. They could all see him as clearly as any other person on the street, but unlike the others, Ichigo was totally unaware and continued to run as if invisible.

"Urahara!" he yelled, as he burst into the blonde man's familiar shop. Even coming in like this gave the Ichigo a crawling feeling on his skin from the events that he experienced here before.

"Hmm?" Kisuke looked up with true interest at the boy entering his store. "What are you do…I mean, what happened to you?" he changed the question mid sentence, realizing the answer to his first question as it was easily evident.

"You say that like you know something I don't."

"Then you'd be right in that assumption." A sly smirk crossed his face and he stooped over a group of thirsty plants. He gently trickled water from a small purple can onto their soil and the leaves almost instantly appeared greener. The mix of flowers also seemed to stand a little taller as well as open their petals wider.

"You know what's happening to me?" he said after briefly pausing to observe the man water his plants. Urahara didn't respond immediately and set his can down on a counter. He then slowly, as if choosing his words carefully, walked over to Ichigo.

"Yes. I know exactly what you are." He rested a curious finger on his lips and looked at Ichigo warily. Kisuke moved into the boy's face a little too close for comfort, and Ichigo pulled away uncomfortably.

"What is it…?"

"I'm surprised you haven't it figured it out for yourself yet."

"Uh, no." he grumbled sarcastically in the usual teenage tone. "That's kinda why I'm here…"

"You are now a Hisquori." Urahara cut him off with severity and stepped back from him. He began to extend his hand through the hole in Ichigo's chest experimentally with another inquisitive expression. He stretched his fingers and they found their way to an opened backside. Ichigo looked over his shoulder and suddenly felt ill seeing the man's wiggling digits coming through his back.

"Quit that!" he snapped heatedly and slapped Kisuke's hand out from his inside. "What the crap is a 'Hisquori'?" he asked next, his tongue rolling the strange words around his mouth. He took a deep breath and narrowed his eyes, trying to ignore the fact that Urahara was now peering through him at his flowers on the other side of his shop. The man even frowned and murmured, "Those need to be watered…" under his breath.

"A Hisquori is a type of spiritual being whose powers come from a combination of a soul reaper, hollow, and Quincy. You have all off their gifts along with a few extras, as you have no doubt noticed by now." He stared at Ichigo now, but spoke with an air to his voice that almost seemed to be portraying a loss of interest, as if his words were unimportant.

"I'm a Quincy? Wait, no, I'm a _hollow_?" Ichigo's voice cracked in alarm. _That must have been why Uryu was acting so odd. He seemed so angry…did I…steal his powers? _

"Yes. It should be fairly obvious, especially from looking at your new appearance." He sighed heavily and continued. "I knew all this as soon as I saw your chest yesterday. That mark has only been created one other time in the entire history of the battle between Quincys, hollows, and soul reapers."

"So you're saying that I'm not the only one?"

"Well, not directly. I'm not sure how it happened to her anyway, but there's an older woman named Elise who was, as of before, the first and only one to claim the unique title of Hisquori. But, no one's heard from her in centuries. She been thought to be dead or she simply went insane…"

"Ichigo! Let's go!" Three sharp pounds came at his bedroom door and he opened his eyes suddenly in a dazed confusion. He was sprawled out uncomfortably across the floor, his face pressed up against a rug, as the faint scent of blood floated to his nostrils. He looked up from the ground feeling drained of all strength, and saw a fresh bloody cut that stretched the length of his arm. The wound bled onto his rug, creating a pure crimson stain he just knew would be a pain to get out. As both arms were stretched out in front of him, he could see that the opposite hand from the injured arm was holding a jagged piece of glass. He glanced up further still and saw his mirror was shattered, but was still hanging crooked on the wall. He could barely see himself in the shard of glass, but could tell his face was deathly pale and terrified. He was shaking violently again as he numbly regained his senses and clutched the critical gash in his arm. "Are you up yet?" More knocks were beat upon his door, and Ichigo attempted to shake off his trance and disguise his voice.

"Uh, yeah. Be right there…" He got up, feeling lightheaded from the blood loss and stumbled on his feet. _I was just talking to Urahara…he was talking to me about Elise. I know it just happened again. I think…I think I'm losing my mind…_He was positive that it was the Saturday morning of his appointment. He could scarcely believe he'd forgotten about the entire half a day.

Ichigo hastily grabbed a clean tee shirt from his drawer and tied it around his left arm in a tourniquet. He'd have to treat it later. He grabbed the quick solution of a pullover jacket off his bedpost and threw it over his head. It was all he could do to hide the blood that was already seeping through his makeshift bandage.

By the time he was ready and opened his door, Isshin had already gotten tired of waiting on his son. Ichigo grudgingly reported down stairs, not terribly happy to be participating in his psychiatric appointment, as well as not having any sort of an appetite.

"He's in the car." He heard Karin say flatly before moving on to the refrigerator as she stalked past him. Her hair was a mess as if she'd just woken up, and she was clearly in no mood for chitchat either. He nodded in half apology, half appreciation, and set off for the car. He got in, seeing his dad ready to depart, but as he sat down, Isshin didn't acknowledge Ichigo's presence. He simply started the car without a word and backed down the driveway. His son made a heavy sigh as he gazed out the window, still feeling a rabid throbbing of severed blood flow pulse up and down his concealed arm.

-----------------

"Are you Ichigo Kurosaki?"

"Yes."

"Right this way." The woman with a plastic face stepped briskly, leading the way to some shrink's office. This was probably the last place he wanted to be, as his stomach could not retain itself from doing jumping jacks along side his heart.

The door opened and the she ushered him inside. "Please, have a seat." An elongated chair was suspiciously placed in the center of the room and Ichigo began to imagine the disturbing images of insane people he'd seen in movies sit in the very same position. _I'm not crazy. _He kept repeating the words again and again in his head as he gulped back a pesky lump in his throat. The notion became no better as he noticed the long chair's only companion was a much steadier backed one. His gut wasn't wrong as he felt the room pulse with a feeling of looming madness and extreme discomfort. He took a seat, but defiantly _sat_, as if a firm board was tied to his back, instead of lying down.

"Hello there, I'm Dr. Asheframe. Please lie down. You'll be more comfortable." Another woman that this time was the psychiatrist came in hosting blonde hair that was tied back into a tight bun. She had sharp, focused cobalt blue eyes and was quite tall and slender. She had entered the room mysteriously and nearly made him jump. If she weren't here to prove he was mental, he might have thought she was attractive.

"I don't much feel like it…" Ichigo grumbled, not making eye contact. He looked away and tried to seem completely casual as well as exceedingly bored with the situation.

"Alright then. Tell me, I've heard all about your sudden mood swings from your father, do you care to elaborate?"

"I don't have mood swings. I'm always just like this." He explained flatly, still not looking at her, consciously lying through his teeth.

"So you're never angry or happy?"

"No."

"Really? Not even a little?"

"Really." She scribbled down a minor note on her clipboard, which seemed to send him into nervous bouts of fidgeting. It was like he couldn't control his fingers from twitching constantly beginning at that moment.

"Hmm. Well, what did you eat for breakfast this morning…?"

"I didn't eat anything. I wasn't feeling too well when I woke up this morning."

"Excuse me?"

"You just asked me what I had for breakfast, and I answered. Problem?" He threw he a skeptical look and huffed irritably.

"Did you say I _just _asked you this question?" She leaned closer to him with keen interest and her eyes boggled in her head excitedly.

"Uh, yeah. Like five seconds ago." He looked up and suddenly realized that he was lying on his back. When had he decided to cooperate with her?

"No, I didn't." She spoke her words as if she was breaking a record of some kind and was extremely over eager.

"What?"

"I asked that question over an hour ago. One hour and three minutes to be exact." She noted, checking her watch. Ichigo's head swiveled to attention as he nearly rolled off the small couch. He caught himself from tumbling off, and locked his eyes onto hers. He could tell she was deadly serious about the matter. His thoughts and all stability of faith he had in himself were fading quickly. _I'm not crazy…_he tried repeating the depleted phrase as he had before, but its affect was not nearly as strong. He was simply not capable of believing it anymore.

Dr. Asheframe smiled, freezing the steady widening of his eyes.

"I had a feeling that was it."

"What was it?" His voice was quivering as he reeled back feeling out of control.

"Split personalities."

"No. You must be mistaken…"

"You have three different sides of yourself that are each controlling different emotions as well as actions. Apparently, you are unable to remember when the other two are in control of your mind. Even after evaluating you over the past hour and a half, I still am unsure what is causing these severe changes in personality though."

"But…!" The disgruntled patient began to protest, but knew it would only be futile to argue with her. That was it. The last piece of the puzzle. Between the knowledge of himself being a Hisquori he learned from Kisuke and the information of the three split personalities from Dr. Asheframe, he was beginning to completely understand his situation. Well, _almost_. There was still one thing that didn't quite fit: the suicidal attempts on his life. Those were still just as disturbing.

"One side is extremely angry, another is quite happy and content, while the last is your normal self. In other words, you." He barely noticed her interrupt his thoughts with her continuation of the diagnosis.

"I…!" Ichigo knew the three were the Quincy, who was happy, the hollow, who was mad, and the soul reaper who was somewhere in between, but he had no idea the kind of influence they were making on his mind. Things could get incredibly dangerous in a bad situation, and he knew somehow that the time was drawing closer.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Boy was this a long one.

Listen, my Internet is acting really strange here at the beach. I don't know what is going on exactly, but it might be awhile between this and my next chapter. (That's also why it took so long for this one. Sorry.) Please stay with me though! I come back Sunday night, but I don't think it will be that long. That's the latest though. Promise. I hate to do this to you as well as myself. It kills me when I can't post a chapter between the timeframe of 1 to 2 days…

Reviews are great! Thank you!

-Quig-


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Ichigo spoke to no one; he was unsure of how to deal with himself after the stern talk he had with Dr. Asheframe. It still amazed him that it was possible to even have a personality that was split three different ways, although he didn't doubt it. He hadn't the slightest idea when his other sides would strike, so he could do nothing to effectively prevent it from happening. The only thing he could hope to work was locking himself away in his room and never come out again, but he knew that would be shot down in an instant. He still had to face school, and there was still the constant dread of not knowing all the vile things he had said and done to his teacher, friends, and family. He truly hated every waking moment of this nightmare. He almost wished the other parts would take over, leaving him to rot unconsciously in his unending misery.

The setting sun cast a red-orange glow, illuminating everything. Ichigo sighed, no longer able to feel the sun's warming rays. He flopped down onto his bed, desiring to sleep forever and never face real life again…

_"I'll kill you! Do you hear me? I'll kill you!" The purest but most evil white skin gleamed in the blackness, only shadowed by the sadistic smile shining on the beings face. _

_"Filth like you doesn't deserve to live!" Another figure was visible as a silhouette that held a familiar glowing blue bow. The two stood facing each other, glimmers of hate filling their eyes. _

_"Stop!" A third had entered the ominous place and was now on his knees, crying out in desperation. "You must stop this!"_

_"Why, soul reaper? Let me handle the hollow. You're obviously too weak to finish him. Typical." The form with the bow sneered and spoke sharply, never taking his eyes off the pale spikey haired beast of a hollow. "It is first my duty to kill him, and then you, soul reaper."_

_"Heh." The hollow's chuckle morphed into a cold chilling laughter, as he grinned cockily. "Like that's ever gonna happen. I'm gonna kill you both before you even have a chance to shoot me with your little pathetic arrows."_

_"No!" The Quincy and hollow leaped at each other simultaneously, the hollow armed with a black replica of Ichigo's Zanpaku-to and the Quincy with his bow…_

Ichigo stood atop his bedpost at 3:00 AM on a bleak Monday morning. A tight rope-like cloth was looped around his neck, but he was unaware of the fact that it was restricting his breathing. His foot was hanging off into thin air, as the rest of his body was about to follow its lead. This makeshift noose was strung up and tied around his ceiling fan blades securely. The room was dead silent as he leaned forward, beginning his final decent.

Some unknown factor caused his eyes to snap open. He swayed dangerously at the pinnacle of his own suicide, and he immediately noticed that if he fell, there would be nothing to grab onto nor would his feet inevitably touch the floor.

Ichigo struggled against the pale twisted sheet, pirouetting at the peak of his bedpost, and eventually freed himself. He toppled over backward, tumbling off his bed and landed on the floor with a hard thump. His fingers fidgeted, groping uncontrollably at the carpet fringe in the darkness. He broke out in a cold sweat and inhaled large gulps of air as he quaked all over. At that moment, he wasn't entirely sure what was faster: his heartbeat or his rough breathing.

_I just…tried to…kill…_He was having trouble completing the gruesome thought. _I nearly killed…myself! What's wrong with me?! _Ichigo was rooted to the floor through his butt, feeling numb and defenseless. From the dream that he knew was no coincidence, he quickly realized the three parts of him were disagreeing and were far from understanding that they were all one within the same body. As the Quincy, hollow, and soul reaper are all sworn enemies, some on more extreme levels than others, they all share thoughts of only killing one another. Sooner or later, Ichigo knew he was either going to go mad or kill himself in the process. He guessed it would be the latter in the equation.

He was still frozen and remained that way for a very long time. He thought about things in a way he never had before and soon felt more scared than ever. He didn't doubt he resembled the color of the sheet that had previously encircled his neck.

When he finally got the nerve to move again he decided instantaneously that he wasn't going to go back to sleep. He would _never _go to sleep again. As foolish as the idea was, he also knew he might not be given the opportunity unless it was to sleep forever.

---------------------

Ichigo hesitantly arrived at school, hating himself for actually showing his face in front of all those people that he could hurt. He could only imagine the reaction he would get when he his teacher saw him. He shuddered, also remembering his family. He had completely avoided them that morning by slipping out his bedroom window.

He was still shocked that he had let his other personalities take over for an entire Sunday.

The only thing that had him determined to stay at school was the fact that while he was in his right mind, he could apologize to everyone.

"Hey Ichigo!" The familiar bright-eyed girl exclaimed, happy as always to see him. She smiled with a bright brilliance that made him long for even a sliver of her genuine cheerfulness.

"Hey." He smiled feebly, meeting her just inside the classroom. Orihime frowned at his response and looked at him curiously.

"What's wrong? Are you still not feeling well?"

"I couldn't sleep at all last night. I didn't have breakfast either. No big deal really."

"Oh…" She was deeply concerned for his welfare no matter the words of encouragement he supplied as an excuse, and bit her lip in deep thought. "Well, I have a little food left over from…"

"Ichigo!" Another girl's voice split the air, leaving the first one's silent. Rukia had called from behind the two in a bit lower pitch and strode up to the boy with an air of importance.

"Hey." He gave her the same bland response as he had Inoue. The shorter soul reaper gave him the stern 'There's a hollow look" and he nodded with a sigh. Orihime was still staring at the two, wondering what kind of connection she had with him outside of school. She, once again, came up feeling clueless.

"Listen Inoue, I've got to go for a bit."

"Alright…see you later…Ichigo…" She barely got the broken words out of her mouth before the two walked away. Orihime couldn't help but feel a deep twinge of jealously as she watched them leave together.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I know it's not, but I feel like this chapter is shorter than it should be. Well, even if it is, the next chapter turns up the 'holy crap, what?!?' factor quite a bit. So, yeah, please keep reading. Reviews are good too. Oh, and btw, the beach here is so nice and pretty…me thinks of fanfic plotlines all day long while listening to my Orange Range…hmm. Shiny…

-Quig-


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

_"Ichigo!" A voice seemed to call out from a thick, impregnable oblivion. "Ichigo!" He felt himself swimming farther from the slightly recognizable voice and into a bottomless pit of darkness. "Please stop!" He felt suspended in the dense air for a brief moment, as if someone had suddenly stopped his endless falling…_

"Ichigo!" Rukia's voice had finally broken through an invisible barrier that had so closely guarded his mind. He looked out, opening his eyes for the first time seeing something other than the darkness of the pitch black, and his heart became a solid block of ice. All he could see was perilous ground below him four stories downward. "Ichigo!" It was her frightened voice again, but this time her calls seemed much closer, even if he was still unable to see her. He then felt the tight grip of a small pair of hands yanking back on his arm. "Please get down from there!"

Ichigo was now fully aware of the situation, regaining control over all his senses. Sometime between them leaving the classroom and on their way to exit the school to take care of the hollow, Ichigo's mind had drifted very far from his own. He peered down, and his heart became good friends with the upper part of his throat. He shivered, noticing how incredibly close he was from jumping out the fourth story window. His foot was inching across the windowsill, his toes overlapping the edge. This scene left no doubt in his mind that this was destined to end in his absolute death.

"Ichigo?" Rukia called out to him cautiously, noticing a change in him. Her voice was calmer now, but he could still hear the lingering fear residing within. He looked back at her and instantly formed the idea that if she had not been there to stop him, he would most definitely be dead. For that, he was eternally grateful.

"R-rukia…" His lips seemed unfamiliar with the simple task of speaking as they attempted to shape the word into her name.

Ichigo slowly stepped down from the window in several shaky uneven movements. He sluggishly replanted his foot on the school's linoleum hallway floor and felt ashamed to face her.

"I…" he began, still not looking her in the eye as he fished the depths of his mind for a believable explanation.

"We were just running down this hallway and you…you _changed_. I don't know what happened, you just all of the sudden dashed to window and tried to…tried to jump…" He felt a guilty pang in his chest and looked down at her, meeting her eyes. She was clearly angry. But not just anger filled those eyes. Fear lay there as well. Her expression only made Ichigo fell worse. She then blinked, tearing her furious eyes from his, and muttered out, "I didn't know what else to do but stop you…I'm not sure if I did the right thing…"

Rukia's words stung. They penetrated him in a way that all of the terrifying events over the past few days could not. She explained her thinking as well as everyone else's in that one simple sentence. Maybe he didn'tdeserve to live anymore. Should she have just let him commit suicide? _I'm not sure if I did the right thing…_ Her words were still echoing painfully in his mind when she looked back up at him, a newly discovered strength in her sapphire eyes.

"There's still a hollow on the loose. I'll just pretend that didn't happen. Come on, we don't need any further delays." She sprinted ahead of him without glancing back. If he were to try jumping again, would she stop him this time? He shook off the unwanted 'dead' feeling and knew he had a job to do.

-------------------

Uryu peeked around the corner, curiously watching the two by the window. He had only seen the end of what appeared to be a suicidal attempt by Ichigo, but he still wasn't entirely sure. He had a feeling that the fact that Ichigo and Rukia were leaving together was due to a hollow. The suicidal attempt was a whole other story that increased his curiosity ever still. He knew his best bet was to follow them to their destination if he wanted to discover the truth.

-------------------

"What?"

"You look…you just look different…" Rukia looked up at him with wide eyes dazzling in a new sort of confusion against the midday sun.

"Yeah, well, it's no big deal. We have a hollow to get, remember?" Ichigo knew he was repeating himself, but he didn't want her to start believing, even if he already was, that he shouldn't be saved because of the monster he was becoming. She quickly looked away from him with a slow calming breath, but her piercing gaze still hung in the air with its fearful discontent still clear. It gave Ichigo an uncomfortable feeling in the pit of his stomach again that floated somewhere between guilt and betrayal.

Rukia dashed ahead once more, pocketing her red and black flame glove as she left him to trail a few paces behind. (She stashed his body behind some bushes in the schoolyard, even if it wasn't all that great a hiding place.) They crossed under an overpass and for the first time, Ichigo noticed a distinct difference as he looked at her. Before when he had been on his way to Urahara's shop, also in his soul reaper form, he had seen many variations of the glowing white souls. The snowy presence had clearly meant that they contained no spiritual powers, but as he saw now, Rukia was surrounded, inside and out, by a profound crimson color. As he thought back, he now wondered why Kisuke had no color whatsoever…His only explanation were that normal humans were white and soul reapers were red, but what did that make Urahara…?

"It's just up ahead." She called from ahead, breaking the concentration of his thoughts. Her speed was increasing steadily, as her gigai was one of the best, and it seemed she would never grow tired. Her eyes were focused down at her phone-like hollow tracking device that emitted a distinct beeping that sounded more rapidly as they grew closer to the target. "There!" she suddenly announced, braking in the dirt at long last. Ichigo came to a stop at her side and followed her gaze across the open grass of the park. The only thing he could see was a small boy hunched over and sitting on a bench, appearing to cry.

"Where?" he asked, ignoring the sniffling child.

"Right there!" She reiterated with a sharp point of her finger that was directed at the little boy. This left Ichigo no room to second-guess that she was definitely referring to the kid being a hollow.

"I don't see…him…" he mumbled quietly, pretending his own eyes were lying in a way he knew they couldn't.

"Look harder!" She yelled, beginning to get irritated. He squinted and began to see a syrupy black mist form all around the boy on the bench. His sobs also seemed to increase and Ichigo's heart felt as if was cracking with sadness. If the boy was indeed a hollow, then how, first of all, could he not see its grotesque form? Why did he see it as its once human form of a ghost, and most of all, why did his heart pang for the hollow in such a way that made Ichigo nearly want to break down in tears from the unknown urge of immeasurable sadness?

"Rukia, we can't…he's just a…" His brain was disagreeing with his words. He knew what was right, but another had taken over his tongue.

"What?" she snapped sharply, turning with a dangerous look meaning all business.

"I…"

"Take out your Zanpaku-to and strike it down before it attacks! Quickly Ichigo!"

"I can't…" he could only admit to her sheepishly, barely able to suppress the overwhelming inclination to cry. His voice grew weaker and began to wither away. Ichigo knew it wasn't at all like him to refuse and feel defeated like this, but his only explanation was the hollow. Did monsters like them have feelings as well? Were soul reapers really doing the right thing by cutting them down even if they had lost all sense of sanity? He was no longer sure if he could ever look at a hollow the same again, as he now had a strong impression of brotherhood among their kind. This one was no different, as he had let the dark side of himself sway his strongest opinions.

Then, the voices began to speak and create total chaos within his mind.

_"Just kill it! It's a bloodthirsty monster!"_

_"No, leave him alone!"_

_"Stop! Get out of my head!" _The three all screamed different things, each with their own plea and meaning. Their one conjoined voice seemed to ring agonizingly through the air in deep unison. Ichigo could hear nothing but the battle for control within himself. He grasped the hilt of his sword, steadying himself, and closed his eyes. _Stop it. _He tried to speak to them calmly, but the other two refused to be silent. _Stop! _He was getting angry, falling into a deadly trap that held no return. _Shut up!_

"Ichigo, come on!" Rukia yelled again, inching away as the hollow before them finally reared its ugly head and took a step forward, but her chides were no longer important in Ichigo's shattered frame of mind.

_"Hurry! Kill the monster! It's coming this way!"_

_"No, he's just a little crying boy!"_

_"Shut it! Just stop! Be quiet!" _He felt blinded to all but the bloody mix of black, red, blue, and white that swirled before his eyes. His ears became deaf to all others as well; the only thing left were his tortured screams that were heard and felt inside and out.

"I said SHUT UP!" The Hisquori bellowed above the cries of weakness and all about could no longer deny his presence. A white mask materialized over his face in the blink of an eye, marked with three daunting black stripes that drew themselves darkly down each side, bordering his gleaming eyes. They peered out in madness, hosting their demented white-hot intensity, clearly without competition in dominance, as all others shuddered in his wake. An icy chill made their spines tremble and bend to his will obediently. He cast a sinister feeling of terror inside those all around him as well, as he rose taller and seemed much more intimidating than ever before. Ichigo was now just as this, a true Hisquori.

He drew his sword in a fraction of a second, as his reflexes and overall speed had increased dramatically. Its glittering black blade shown against the golden sun, reflecting the distinct crimson streaks that may have been at one time an enemy's fresh blood.

"I-ichigo?" Rukia could only watch this transformation in horror. This was much more frightening than the hollow at Urahara's shop before. Ichigo was a full-fledged monster and there was no way to stop him this time. She juggled quick glances between the hollow and Hisquori and was unsure which was more dangerous. Maybe she should have let Ichigo die…

A guttural roar broke her thought and she was forced to cover her ears, clapping her hands over them tightly. She squinted at what remained of Ichigo, and began to feel overpowered by the massive increase of spiritual pressure. The Hisquori was now charging the hollow without the slightest hesitation.

Not one of Ichigo's sides had a fragment of control anymore. He had become one mass of extremely powerful raw spirit energy that was now slashing out with his sword wildly. He still retained his Hisquori form, but his mind was in a desperate state of irrefutable turmoil.

The black Zanpaku-to shimmered as it sliced through the air in which the hollow had resided only moments before. Now, the beast faded and disappeared into a wisp of smoke, leaving the area clear of threats. At least, this is what Rukia had believed to be the outcome. Unfortunately, the Hisquori was only beginning his malicious killing spree. She soon saw this as the depressing truth when Ichigo turned on his heel and raised his blade. He slowly lowered it again; its hilt was grasped tightly in his left hand and pointed at her from ten short feet away. He gently cocked his head to the side as if they were beginning a game, just before he ran in for the kill, and Rukia could have sworn his thin skeleton grin stretched wider across his pale face.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hmm? What did I tell you? Was it worth it? –smiles- I don't know what you thought about this chapter, but I'm certainly satisfied with it. Um, so I'll try not to have you guys wait too long for the next one. I know cliffhangers suck. Sorry about that. –nervous laughter- (don't kill me…) Hope you'll review (poke the shiny button…it calls to you…) and I also hope by the end of this chapter I got a few of you hyperventilating. Lols. All I can say is its about to get even more intense. –evil grin-

-Quig-


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

"Stop this Ichigo!" Rukia shouted at him, trying to create the illusion that she was still in control of the situation. She winced, finally taking her hands from her ears with the sound decreasing, but she still appeared to be having trouble standing on her own. Her knees wobbled under the intense spiritual pressure that surrounded them both. She took a shaky step back, nearly losing her balance as a result. "Please…" her voice was growing fainter against the wind as the Hisquori tilted his head to one side. He seemed to sneer at her and narrow his eyes spitefully.

Ichigo bolted forward; his deadly black blade aimed for her heart, and he closed the ten-foot gap without a second more of hesitation. Rukia was rooted to the spot and could only wince in anticipation, tears gathering in her eyes just before spilling down her cheeks…

He stopped dead, the razor sharp edge of his sword inches from her neckline. The center of his Zanpaku-to hovered just above her shoulder, as if he had nearly missed during his final, killing strike. His body was mostly rigid, with only a slight bend in his back, as he was unable to move. His face was so near to hers, Rukia could hear his own ragged breaths from beyond the mask. She looked up into Ichigo's wild, soulless eyes and saw the outline of a cross begin to etch itself across his face. It stretched the length of the mask and spread over his cheeks, soon beginning to glow. Then, another, more prominent glow, caught her eye from the left and she gasped.

Ichigo may have been frozen, but his right hand pulsed with a deathly color blue. A shimmering cross, much the like the image on his face, seemed to command the movement of his right arm as if on puppet strings. His left hand still grasped the hilt, cornering Rukia so she could only stare death directly in the face. The tiny chain grew closer to her as he extended his arm, almost to where his fingertips were touching her forehead.

"Ichigo…" she whispered his name softly, as she watched the surrounding spirit energy gather in the palm of his hand into a tight, swirling mass. The blinding lights from the shining cross swayed before her, as it was now the only thing she could clearly see. It was brimming with energy that was on the verge of being released. Her voice was no longer capable of even begging for mercy…

The Hisquori's eyes narrowed between the markings on his mask, surging with the crimson color he was only moments from painting the ground with. He bent closer, unconsciously wanting the best view of the girl's death. He twisted his hand slightly and curled his left fingers over the unreleased valve of spirit energy.

Rukia's eyes were wide and understanding. She could not blink, for she had fully accepted that she would die here. Ichigo could see his monstrous form, as well as what he was about to do reflecting in her sapphire eyes, and he finally unleashed his Quincy's power…

"R-rukia…" When he spoke, his eyes faded back into a calm amber color, as his strong, azure arrow stabbed into the ground by her feet. The glow flickered and disappeared next to her toes, as it had so narrowly missed her that her cheek had been sliced. A salty tear mingled with the droplets of blood and streaked down her face. Ichigo sacrificed his last moments of sanity for her sake, decreasing his spirit energy in his final instant of control and effectively saved her. "Run…" he whispered so softly that she could have sworn the true Ichigo would always be there to protect her no matter the abomination he looked to have become.

Rukia slowly regained movement in her limbs and she immediately turned to run. She knew this was her only possible means of escape, just as well, she also knew that it was useless to save Ichigo now. Although, she still glanced back, feeling a twist of guilt and longing deep in her heart. Somewhere a thought bubbled in the back of her mind that she might never see him again…

Someone else bumped into her, loosing the morbid thoughts from her head roughly. She looked up at the culprit, tearing her eyes from Ichigo.

"Uryu?!" she shouted in surprise as the boy that had disrupted her continued to rush by without a word of apology. "Wait! What are you…?" He paid no attention to her calls and sprinted straight to the Hisquori. Rukia simply spun and ran as far as she could.

"Oi! Ichigo!" The boy stopped and looked up at the heartless creature bravely. His friend seemed to have once again become a mindless creature that had this time given his life to save another. In this case being Rukia. He'd seen the barrier of tense spiritual energy subside briefly, so he knew it was his only chance to reach the Hisquori once she had escaped from danger. He knew Ichigo was still in there somewhere, or at least his brain was. Along with one overdeveloped instinct for killing. "I want them back!" Uryu screamed at the top of his lungs. He curled his fists as they shook with rage. "I don't care how, just give me my Quincy powers back!" He didn't see this as begging. He was prepared for a fight if he was forced to. Then again, he wasn't thinking all that clearly to actually believe an almost powerless human like himself could stand a chance against a full fledged Hisquori.

A blue arrow streaked past and he easily dodged with a quick step to the side.

"You'll have to do better than that if you want to kill me!" He squatted, ready to spring in either direction as he waited to avoid another shot.

"Never human…they belong to me now…" he hissed in a low crackled voice. A hoarse laughter followed, seeping into the boy's ears like hot tar that burned his brain. The Hisquori also crouched low, mimicking his pathetic attempt to prepare for an attack. It was obviously a one-sided battle in more ways than one.

Ichigo charged first, sword raised and arrow-bursting hand outstretched, both with equal importance. He roared against the wind and rushed Uryu, who dove, rolling away behind the temporary safety of the park bench. The Hisquori followed with angry cries, still swinging wildly. Even with the crazed strokes, plenty were bound to hit, as they indeed, several met their mark. Uryu had been seriously injured in numerous areas, a few of the blows to his ribs. He was positive he felt at least two crack cleanly, but he wasn't counting the third as a simple fracture either. Ishida may have been receiving a violent beating, but he tried to keep his head cool and his wits. Every minute it got harder.

"Is that all you got?" Uryu knew egging on the enemy was pretty ignorant, but he could only hope that it would shake Ichigo's defenses, creating an opening. And one did create itself, but not for Uryu. The Hisquori took full advantage just as the boy tripped on a rock, most likely the result of his dizziness from the fight as well as blood loss and growing fatigue.

Four arrows were fired smoothly from Ichigo's palm in one swift stroke. They all met their target, pinning Ishida to a large oak tree in the center of the park. They pierced his shoulders and thighs, leaving him without breath and completely defenseless. The remains of the icy blue arrows throbbed painfully in his wounds, as he began to bleed profusely. A dark crimson stain blossomed through his white shirt and flowed across the fabric of his denim jeans.

For a brief moment, it seemed the Hisquori was resting as he slowly stalked closer to his prey. Uryu could see the one thing he had failed to notice before as the demon drew nearer. Ichigo no longer had a three-way split personality; he was something different altogether. The Quincy, hollow, and soul reaper had created a separate being that had truly only been seen once before. Previously, he had still seen the fight between them, but now, all lines that drew them unique had been erased. They were inseparable as one.

The Hisquori's skeleton grin broadened evermore as the steps away grew fewer and fewer to Uryu. He wanted every moment to be dripping with excruciating pain for the poor, pathetic boy that had at one time been a Quincy. He wanted him to beg for death just before he released him from the unbearable agony of living in this tortured life. Ichigo should have known this fact the best.

In one quick motion, the Hisquori jolted forward, his black and bloody blade raised before him. His other hand trailed at his side as his preferred method of killing was obviously through the use of his sword.

Uryu could only blink feebly, catching faint glimpses of Ichigo due to his hazy eyesight. Glasses made no difference at this point. His wounds definitely had a severe effect on his vision. To him, it was like watching an old, sketchy horror movie where the film was grainy and tended to skip from time to time. He also seemed to be observing the entire nightmare from a clouded third person perspective. _Yeah._ He told himself with an invisible smile just as the Zanpaku-to pierced his chest. _This is all just a really bad dream…_His vision resembled swirling fog, as he lost all feeling in his limbs and body in general. With finality, he heard the last 'chink' of the blade sinking into bark of the tree that had been supporting his backside. He could no longer feel the pain. He was exhausted and felt a deep, dark length of sleep eager to take him away. He had no strength left to fight it, and exhaled his last hindered breath just before disappearing into nothingness.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now it's Uryu on the verge of death. Last chapter was Rukia. Hmm. Another fun cliffhanger. (well, for me. I get to see you squirm lols) Thank you for the encouragement and reviews once again! (it's broke 30! Wow!) I'll have the next one up soon as I can but it's a bit lengthy so just be patient (which I know you can be –smiles-) All I can say is poor Uryu…for now. –muhahah-

-Quig-


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Rukia had flat out abandoned Ichigo. She knew what she had done was wrong and probably the biggest mistake of her life, but the only thing that left her feeling slight satisfaction with her actions was the fact that she could have done nothing anyway and was completely useless. Her brain had told her all this, but her heart, which beat to a different melody, said to run, wait, and pray.

She methodically rounded the next corner on the street in which the Kurosaki family lived. As his house came into view, she felt her insides drop. Just looking up at his window made her shamed to ever have been called his friend. Remorse and stabs of regret filled her as she bit her lip, lightly closing her eyes. She began to travel back, pretending that she could hear his uninjured voice, living a full and free life with his happy family, and everything was just as it was before she had ever ruined his life. Would his life have truly been better if she had never given him her soul reaper powers? Was this all her fault?

The blame that crashed down on her shoulders was almost more than she could take, as she silently entered the house. With her eyes still firmly shut, she stepped down from the windowsill by memory, and her foot gently rested on his desk. His scent still hung heavy in the air, so intoxicating, that she could almost see his lanky figure standing there beneath her eyelids. She moved across the room over to his bed and fell upon it roughly to where the mattress's springs squeaked. Here she could feel him. Ichigo's smell, his presence, no, his entire _being_ was felt here. It was almost as if he were lying right there beside her as she snuggled her face deeper into his pillow.

This was her last goodbye. This was the last time she could think about him. This was last time she would ever acknowledge the name Ichigo Kurosaki.

--------------------

Ichigo's blade glowed of a brilliant blue intensity as it buried itself deeper and deeper within the trunk of the tree beneath Uryu's lifeless body. The sword began to steam, heating up immensely, and the Hisquori was forced to release the hilt. The Zanpaku-to now acted on its own, shuddering within the wound of the boy's body. A blinding glow washed out all senses, but as it faded, Ichigo looked up from a slight squint, seeing the truth of what he had done through sane eyes at last.

"Uryu!" he screamed, yanking his blade from the center of his classmate's chest and throwing it aside. Simultaneously, the four arrows that had pinned him there disintegrated and Uryu's body slumped to the ground. Blood pooled around the base of the tree, smearing the bark with dark crimson streaks. "I'm so sorry!" Ichigo cried out in helplessness. He reached out to touch him, but stopped, and was afraid he'd cause further damage. "U-uryu…" He buckled over in choked sobs and his mask cracked, falling away into many jagged pieces. He hid his multi-colored eyes from the crumpled body before him, and kneaded them roughly with his knuckles.

_"Why are you crying?" _A harsh voice snapped with clear irritation. "_Do you want to save this stupid Quincy or not?"_

"Quincy?" Ichigo looked up and saw a faint cerulean glimmer inside Uryu through his inverted eye. "I thought I was…"

_"No, you idiot. You gave it up. It's just the two of us now." _He finally realized that the hollow inside of him was addressing him. _"Get your lazy self up and save him if he really means that much to you. You're making us both look bad with that dreadfully pathetic excuse you call crying. Get up!"_

"I…" He exhaled a deep breath, focusing his mind. His eyes opened with vigor and purpose and he immediately scooped Uryu's body up in his arms. The hospital was only a block away, but he knew that it would seem like running a marathon. He wasn't sure how serious the damage was, but the sooner Ishida received treatment, the better. Ichigo was not about to be the one to postpone it any longer and took off running.

As he raced down the street, he began to notice, very much unlike before, the curious and some even frightened stares. He didn't blame them. He would stare too if he saw someone wearing a samurai outfit carrying another who was unconscious and covered in blood, and he hadn't known of soul reapers' existence. But how could they see him? If he was a soul reaper, he should have been invisible to average human eyes. Maybe they just saw Uryu's body floating down the road…no, they were definitely looking at two people. He met eyes with many of them and saw fear. It was better, he soon concluded, to avoid their looks altogether, as well as not frighten them, and dodge civilization by running the route to the hospital through back alleys.

Ichigo's eyes flickered with fighting spirit that he only wished he could pass on to Uryu as well, just as the hospital came into view. This was, without a doubt, the best place for him to get help. If Ichigo had taken him to his father's clinic, there would have been major problems.

A nurse eyed the two boys curiously from a distance as they drew closer, but the second they past through the white revolving doors, her jaw dropped. Ichigo and the woman looked at each other and each saw different things. He saw a frightened young girl radiating with white light that pulsed from her soul, and she saw the devil delivering death to her front doorstep. So much for not wanting to scare anyone. At least Uryu covered the hole in his chest.

"Listen!" he yelled, breaking the short silence. "I need emergency treatment for him immediately! He was in a bad fight and he's dying!" The lady behind the desk gaped, petrified. She couldn't seem to pull away from his gaze, not even to look at the condition of the patient. This was really starting to annoy Ichigo. "Okay, I know my eyes are weird, but this is serious!" She blinked, slowly recovering from the spell she was under, and her hand crept towards the phone.

"D-doctor…" she squeaked into the phone in a high stressed tone of voice. "We…we have a patient in extreme condition here. He needs care at once. Yes sir. Thank you. Bye." The woman promptly hung up the phone, and finally dipped her eyes to the desktop. A gurney burst through the door on the right nearly a minute later, wheeled in by two middle-aged men wearing green scrubs. They snatched Uryu from Ichigo's arms roughly, and slung his body down onto the small rolling bed in a rush. They began to speed away and back through the doors, and Ichigo started to follow, but one of the forceful doctors commanded him to stay and pointed to the waiting room.

Ichigo reluctantly took a seat among the other more average groups of people in the waiting room. He saw some people sweating, while other fathers paced the floor awaiting the arrival of a new son or daughter. He also saw concerned huddles of family members, all praying in soft whispers and crying delicate tears. They were all here by the fault of another or for the greater good. Ichigo felt positively alone in the center of this hot sticky room.

He sighed with a feeling of slight depression, and balanced a hand under his chin and down to his thigh. Ichigo could once again sense the fervent stares piercing him from all angles. From the moment he had sat down, all eyes had been cast on him. Even the most stressed individuals that were constantly moving about the room in an uneasy manner had stopped to gawk at him. This was _really _getting old. _What am I, some kind of freak show?_ He hastily grabbed a tattered magazine from a side table that was at least a year old, and pulled it in front of him. He flipped through the pages without paying attention, as he was more worried about what the normal humans around him would think if they saw the massive hole that he was blocking in his chest. It must have been the remainder of his Quincy powers preventing him from becoming entirely invisible to their eyes.

"Hello!" He slowly lowered his magazine from his face, as a small, perky voice had spoke from behind it.

A small, cute little boy with sandy blonde hair was smiling up at him. He couldn't have been more than six years old.

"Uh, what do you want, kid?"

"What's your name Mister?" He never stopped smiling and completely ignored Ichigo's first question.

"Um, Ichigo."

"Hi there Ichigo, my name's Timothy! Are you from the circus? I just love the circus!" Ichigo's eyebrow twitched in aggravation, as he resisted the impulse to strangle the boy.

"No." he replied curtly, his voice almost cracking, as he continued to restrain himself from violence. "Why do you say that?"

"You look really funny!"

"Timothy! Get over here! Now!" A women a few chairs away expressed in a harsh whisper. He began to scamper towards her, his smile as wide as ever. "What have I told you about…" she began to hiss, but Ichigo lost the rest of her scolding words as he busied himself in the magazine again. He actually tried to read the pointless words, but knew it would feel like a lifetime before he could see Uryu again, and could only gaze at the meaningless pictures.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Well, school's started up for me now, so that's why it took a bit to get this chapter out. Hope it was still worth it. Meh, I'm tired…the next one will be out soon as possible. Oh yeah, did I mention that the next one's the last chapter?

Hope you guys have a great day!

-Quig-


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

A tall dark-haired woman made her way briskly toward Ichigo, who was now staring at the ceiling, on the verge of going crazy from boredom. Over the past four hours, his only companion, who he'd learned to deal with, was the hollow that was constantly jabbering inside him. He had spoken, of course, as he had nothing else to do. Now, as he saw the lady approach him, hope welled up within him, instantly silencing the hollow. Their eyes met, and he knew she was bringing news of Uryu. Whether the news was bad or good, he didn't really want to know. He leaped off his seat, bowing politely, and stared into her face with an eager expression that reminded her of a lost and hungry puppy. His magazine slid off his lap into the floor, as he no longer cared what people would say and think of his appearance. There was nothing that was going to stop him from seeing his friend now.

"Follow me." Ichigo exhaled a small sigh of relief as she dryly split the tension. She turned on the red plastic pumps, assisting her in the challenge for decent height, and he padded after her, nearly treading on the backs of her heels. He could barely keep his mouth closed, as he was about to burst with so many questions. The nurse unexpectedly spoke again, murmuring in a small voice. "He nearly died you know. His wounds appeared to have been caused from the improper use of arrows and a sword of some kind." Ichigo could have laughed at her ignorance, but suppressed the infectious feeling and kept walking along side quietly. "It's quite curious on the account of what you happen to be wearing Sir…" Her voice trailed off suspiciously, and she arched an accusing eyebrow, as the boy dodged her side-shot look. Thankfully, she hadn't noticed the oddest part of his outfit, being the hole in his torso. "Not feeling guilty are we?" she blamed him vaguely, reading his face like an open book, whose pages were really weathered and worn out.

"Look, I didn't do it. Is he alright or not?" In all honesty, if Ichigo had been in his right mind, he would have never dreamed of hurting Uryu in such a way. Still, he couldn't help but feel ashamed of himself, as he was the one who physically struck him down and pierced his skin with the Quincy arrows. For that, there was no excuse.

"He'll be just fine now, but he will need to stay in our care for a few more days. His wounds were quite serious after all." He let out another deep sigh of relief, feeling a heavy weight lifted from his breast.

"Can I see him?" She wordlessly pointed to the third door down the hall and subtly nodded. "Thank you." he said quickly, truly grateful despite the accusation. He hurried to the door marked 'Patient 114: Uryu Ishida' and breathlessly opened it in one forceful swing. A Dr. Cadburn was also listed next to Uryu's name, as he must have been the doctor actively checking up on him. Ichigo was immersed directly into the strong scent of 'hospital' that nearly made him gag in repulsion. He coughed slightly, and blinked, as the fumes blurred his already hazy vision. He was prepared for anything…

Except this.

Uryu was entirely wrapped around from the front to the back of his chest, as he was completely incapable of even wearing the entire pale green hospital gowns. The bandage covered most of skin thickly and looked impossibly uncomfortable. Another span of the cloth cast was plastered around his upper arms, reaching around his shoulders, as yet another set stretched over his thighs. Ichigo could hardly see his legs though, on account that a pair of thin flannel pajamas rolled down concealed his midsection and top of his kneecaps. His lace thin sheet still lay unused at the foot of his bed.

"Uryu?" Ichigo cautiously approached the side of the bed, unsure if the Quincy would or even could respond. Ishida's eyes remained closed and the boy gulped. "Look, I'm really sorry for all the trouble I put you through…and…well…" He paused for a moment, still unable to wrench his eyes from the sad state of his friend.

"Ichigo?" Uryu mumbled weakly, barely cracking his eyes open. They were foggy and unfocused, still staring straight ahead at the bland whitewashed wall.

"Uryu! You're alright!"

"I'm…okay…?" Ishida blinked lethargically, his eyes unseeing. "What happened…where am I…?" Every word was hindered with wheezes and the uneven breaths that followed.

"The hospital…I kind of…"

"That's right." Uryu smiled faintly, as this gesture only confused Ichigo further. "I got what I asked for…taunting you…"

"I'm sorry…I shouldn't have lost control it was just…"

"No." The Quincy spoke firmly, but his voice quickly slipped back into whispers. "I'm talking about my powers. I told you I didn't care how I got them back…this is just the price I had to pay…"

"Stop thanking me like I'm some kind of hero for nearly killing you! I should be thanking _you_!" He really hoped the nurse didn't hear him admit that.

"What are you talking about Ichigo?" Uryu turned to his side to face him more directly, and found himself wincing in the process. He gave up a moment later, and decided to try and be content with lying there on his backside.

"Well," he continued, ignoring the pain he saw in Ishida's eyes. "This is the second time you've saved my life in the past week."

"Not twice." He said in a rough, gravelly voice, clearly confused. "I only helped you at Mr. Urahara's shop. Today I was only looking out for myself…don't try flattery with me Kurosaki." He growled and furrowed his brow at the ceiling.

"But if you hadn't been there, I would still have had your powers and be out of control. Now that they're yours again, I'm free." Of course, Ichigo failed to mention that there was still a hollow bouncing around inside of him somewhere. _I think I can handle one other beside myself. After three, the hollow should be a cakewalk. _He thought confidently, but a dark voice pressed itself into existence and laughed at him coldly.

_"So you think…just wait…" _The hollow responded smugly and Ichigo attempted to calm him again.

_"Quiet you."_

"Oh…I _guess_ I have saved you twice then…" He spoke in an airy way that floated peacefully around the room, and made Ichigo feel slightly better with Uryu's approval.

The boy's eyes had already closed again as his last words were barely audible. Ichigo knew that he needed his sleep to be able to heal completely, so he turned to leave. Just before he reopened the door, he hesitated briefly and walked back even closer to Uryu. He reached down and lightly touched a small patch of exposed skin on Ishida's right arm.

The area of contact glowed, shooting sharp blue streaks down Ichigo's fingers and into the patients arm. He transferred the very last of his Quincy powers back to their rightful owner through his fingertips, along with a small, yet familiar chained cross that transported itself from his to Uryu's wrist.

"Bye Uryu. Sleep well." He smiled down at his classmate fondly, with a gentle glimmer of unseen happiness in his eyes. This time, the joy was truly his. A healthy cerulean glow of a strong Quincy was pulsing within him, making Ichigo feel even surer that it would be the right thing to do to leave him with the doctors. They would take care of him and everything would be back to normal in no time. Well, almost.

He paced himself, and located the same nurse just outside Uryu's door. She was busy scribbling some notes onto a clipboard, not noticing the patient's door open.

"Um, Miss nurse?" Ichigo tried the respectful tactic, coming in front of her. "Will you let me know if anything changes?" The woman ignored him completely and kept scrawling away at her paper. "Uh, hello?" There was still no response. He waved his hands in front of her face, blocking her view from her obviously important work, but she still remained unmoved by his annoying motions. "I guess it really was the last of my Quincy powers that were making me visible." He shrugged his shoulders, and then feeling suddenly immature, stuck out his tongue at her with a smirk. It felt better than he could have imagined. (He may have even heard the hollow chuckle as well.) He then waltzed out of the hospital, really glad he didn't have to worry about people seeing him anymore. He didn't give one person, not even the obnoxious little boy Timothy, a second look.

Ichigo knew he had lot of things to do before he could finally get the chance to rest. He still had to get his body, talk to his family and hopefully gain their forgiveness, and last of all, find Rukia and apologize for putting her through so much over the last week. He wasn't sure which was going to be the hardest to accomplish.

His body, as it turned out, was still lying in an uncomfortable heap in the school yard's bushes that made Ichigo just know he was going to get neck cramps once his body and soul were one again. After merging, he began to make his way back home.

Ichigo neglected to announce his presence when he arrived at his house. He really did want to speak to family right then, but began to second-guess his state of wellness as his fatigue from the day was beginning to set in. He would definitely settle things with his dad and sisters first thing tomorrow morning.

He yawned and his steps became heavier with each tread toward his room. He turned the knob and his door swayed open. The entire room was cast under a dark shadow. It was already well into night by now, so he didn't bother flipping on his light switch. He moved to his bed with another well-deserved yawn, and then stopped, rubbing his eyes.

He could barely make out the blurred outline of a small figure curled into a ball lying on his bed. The person appeared to be sleeping soundly, as he could see when his eyes adjusted that their side rose and fell with content breaths.

"Hello?" he called out to them in the darkness, and leaned closer. Ichigo could see distinct female features and long, almost black hair on the intruder. His first and only guess was clearly: "Rukia?" He tried to speak softer with much more tenderness in his voice. He hesitantly touched her shoulder while the rest of her body was facing away from him, but he could still she her eyes open in surprise. She looked as if she had woken from a sleep she never planned to wake from. It was if she had lost herself in her dreams and would have much rather stayed there from the look of her miserable expression. Wet droplets still clung to her eyelashes.

"Ichigo?" His gentle voice had brought her back, but now, as she stared at his bedroom wall, a newfound sadness enveloped her. It could only be her imagination. Ichigo was dead. Or he had lost his mind, which she considered to be a far worse fate than death. She couldn't help but relate the circumstances to Kaien Shiba. A fresh stream of tears flowed from beneath her eyelids again.

"Stop crying." The voice was firm and steady, stopping her tears.

Then Rukia remembered the light touch on her shoulder that had woken her in the first place. If a hand was there then…She reached up and felt a warm, inviting set of fingers still resting on her shoulder. He was really standing behind her.

"I'd really like it if I could sleep in my bed you know. You do have your own…" She knew for a fact she wasn't imagining this, but a wave of embarrassment flushed her cheeks vividly with scarlet.

"I…!" Rukia rolled backwards out of his bed, colliding with the floor and his feet. She looked up at the orange-haired boy feebly from the ground, her face steadily reddening. She prayed to be nothing more than an invisible blob of goop at that moment.

Ichigo casually stepped over her, not really caring either way, unless one of his options didn't involve sleeping right away.

"I'm tired, so goodnight." He slightly groaned, making his final statement before passing out and pulling his shirt off and over his head. Rukia sat up with wide eyes, watching Ichigo roll to his right under the covers just as he closed his eyes. She slowly picked herself up and disappeared inside her destined closet.

"Goodnight Ichigo." She whispered so low it was as if she was telling herself instead. She took one last peek out the crack in the door before pulling it to. _Maybe tomorrow I'll tell him the mark's gone and he's not a Hisquori anymore…Nah, if he doesn't already know by now, he will soon enough. _Rukia smiled to herself amidst the blackness of the night, and felt totally at peace. She held the comforting fact in her heart that Ichigo was finally sleeping painlessly just a few short feet away. She could swear that she could already hear his heavy, unlabored snores as she drifted off into a serene and dreamless sleep.

The End

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Woo! I truly believe that's the longest story I've ever written! Hope it was well worth it for those of you that followed me from Headaches and to the end of Hisquori. It means an awful lot to me in a way I can't even describe that all you faithful people have been leaving me reviews and waited patiently for me to put up all the chapters. Cookies for everyone! –hugs too-

Well, school's keeping me pretty busy right now, so I haven't quite thought up another story just yet. Don't worry though, I've been tossing around ideas frequently, some of which just might turn into some more o' so shiny Bleach fanfics. –squee!-

Love you all again, and hope you'll be watching out for me in the future! –winks-

-Quig-


End file.
